Farm Frenzy is a series of downloadable casual games developed by Melesta Games and published by Alawar Entertainment. The series utilizes a point-and-click arcade gameplay model that enables the player to manage the production processes on a farm using a mouse.
Gameplay
The goal in a Farm Frenzy game is to purchase animals, process the goods they produce and sell the products for cash. The player feeds animals by watering grass for them to eat, and collects products that they regularly drop and are stored in a warehouse with limited capacity. Predators such as bears sometimes appear on the farm that must be caged by repeatedly clicking on them; otherwise, the predators will toss the other animals off the farm and destroy any goods lying on the ground. Each level has a unique set of objectives, which might include owning so many of a particular animal, producing a certain number of goods or having a specific amount of cash on hand. The player must complete the goals for a level within a specific time limit and are rewarded with silver and gold medals for completing the objectives quickly. Depending on the medal earned for a level, the player earns stars which they use to purchase upgrades that allow them to progress through the game. There are currently 14 games in the series, each having similar gameplay, but in unique environments and new levels. Farm Frenzy 3 is notable for containing a number of additional features, including a central character named Scarlett, a storyline involving Scarlett's quest to help farmers around the world, reworked gameplay that gives the player more control over the operation of her farm, the inclusion of five farms around the world and additional farm animals unique to each region. The visual styleof the Farm Frenzy games is lighthearted, with the artists employing bright colors and humorous animation to portray the action. Today, Alawar has translated the Farm Frenzy series into more than a dozen languages and ported it to multiple platforms, including the Mac, iPhone, the Android, Nintendo DS and Windows Phone. The PC version of Farm Frenzy received the Best Casual Game award at the 2008 Russian Game Developers Conference.
History
Farm Frenzy started to take shape when Alex Meleshkevich, CEO of Belarus-based casual game developer Melesta, met Kirill Plotnikov, vice president of publishing for Alawar Entertainment, at Casual Connect 2007 and they decided to create a game in the time management genre, with the business simulator Chicken Chase as their source of inspiration.
Alawar began working on a sequel to Farm Frenzy soon after the release of the original game, with a team of 16 developers spending six months on the title. This game was Farm Frenzy 2, which was published in July 2008.
Alawar published Farm Frenzy: Pizza Party! in January 2009.
Alawar published Farm Frenzy 3 in July 2009. This game introduced Scarlett, a protagonist that would be used in many future titles in the series. Her goal to become the president of the farmer's union has her travel the world to earn the votes of the people she helps in many of the games.
Alawar published four standalone expansions to Farm Frenzy 3, known as American Pie, Ice Age, Russian Roulette and Madagascar.
Alawar published Farm Frenzy: Gone Fishing, Farm Frenzy: Ancient Rome and 'Farm Frenzy: Viking Heroes. While Gone Fishing and Ancient Rome retained a style similar to Farm Frenzy 3 and featured Scarlett, Viking Heroes made many minor changes and created a new story and characters set in the viking age.
Alawar published Farm Frenzy 4 on April 29, 2014. Farm Frenzy 4 is the first in the series to feature HD graphics and 3D models for characters, objects and animations. While gameplay is similar to previous titles, the visuals are significantly different.
Alawar published Farm Frenzy: Hurricane Season on September 22, 2015 and Farm Frenzy: Heave Ho on May 23, 2016, both of which feature a new art style and the return of Scarlett.
All of the Farm Frenzy games from 2007 to 2010 have been ported to iOS and Android, as well as an additional game with assets being re-used from Hurricane Season and Heave Ho, known as Farm Frenzy & Friends.
